Seeing Green
by 10Koala96
Summary: Can you blame Claire for being jealous of her little sister's growing 'powers? How was it fair that she had inherited none of her parents' half-blood genes? Will her envy get in the way of her judgment as a certain goddess offers an interesting deal?
1. Chapter One

"Tanya!" I screeched, loudly, in search of my flighty little sister. She had feet that could go at, what was to me, an inhuman pace, but had a magnetic force that seemed to attract them to inanimate objects. Long story short, she's fast, but she's a major klutz. Usually, I could use this to my advantage. Unfortunately, the hallways in my house were lacking such objects. And that is where she lurked the most.

Her giggles echoed through the hallway, but I still couldn't see her.

"Tanya," I warned, using 'my indoor voice' as my mother would put it. The last thing we needed was for our neighbors to call the police. _No_. Not on my first night of official babysitting. That would totally suck.

My parents, after much argument, had decided that fourteen was old enough to stay home alone, and to hold responsibility for the house, and the brat that inhabited it. (Tanya.) Tonight was their anniversary, and they'd left me in charge. I'd thought this was great, until Tanya decided it was fitting to play hide and seek. Without asking me first.

Seriously, she just up and left. Disappeared. Poof. Gone.

"Say 'Marco!'" Her voice sounded muffled, like she was standing behind a wall or a door. I wasn't exactly positive. My hearing wasn't all that great, and neither were my 'seeking' skills.

I decided to play along, "Marco?"

"Polo!" She squealed from behind the mystery wall, door.

This was getting me nowhere. "Tanya," my tone was taking on a authoritative tune that I wasn't at all aware that I had, "If you don't come out right now, I'm telling mom that it was you who spilled hot chocolate all over her blueprints." I smiled smugly as I heard scurrying.

Yes, I sucked at hide and seek, but I was decent when it came to ultimatums.

"You're no fun," she whined, as her ten year old self rounded a corner and she marched right up to me. Her blonde hair was disheveled as if she'd been hiding in a closet, which she probably had, and she frowned deeply, her eyebrows creasing together, and her gray eyes narrowing, "You never let me have any fun!"

"This is my first time babysitting you."

"No one ever lets me have any fun!" She pouted "Mom doesn't let me visit Aunt Thalia and her friends, anymore-"

"You shot an arrow at Phoebe's backside," I pointed out, fairly, wincing as I recalled the memory.

She sniffed, as if my point were invalid, and continued as if I hadn't said a thing, "Daddy won't let me go to the park by myself."

"Because you nearly drowned three of your classmates the last time on a field trip," I couldn't keep the bitterness out of my tone. My younger sister had shown signs of inheriting abilities, not very powerful abilities mind you, but still abilities from our grandparents.

But me? I might as well have been born into a mortal family. Honestly. It was as if the half-blood genes skipped me.

I shook the thought away as Tanya continued her rant, "It was an accident!"

"It was not," I rolled my eyes. "You were just jealous-"

"That they had the balloons from the souvenir shop," she recalled, squinting her eyes, as if she were feeling envious all over again. She quickly recomposed her features to look indignant, "I was_ not _jealous!"

"Okay, okay," I surrendered, "You weren't jealous. How about you go change into your pajamas and brush your teeth. Make me look like a good babysitter," I pointed my arm in the direction of the bathroom, smiling hopefully.

She pretended to think about this. "Nah!"

"Tanya, you don't have to go to bed just yet," I compromised, weakly. "Just get ready for bed."

"...Can we watch Spy Kids?"

My eye twitched at the mention of the gods forsaken movie that our entire family had been forced to endure _thirty-three _times. I'll admit I liked the movie when I was ten, as well, but after seeing it thirty-three flipping times... My eye twitched again. Tanya was watching me, expectantly. I sighed, "Fine! We can watch Spy Kids."

"All three of them?"

"Don't push it."

She crossed her arms, "I'm not quite in the mood to change into my pajamas yet. Maybe I'll just walk on over to Carlie's house-"

"We can watch two," I knew that giving into her demands would only make it worse, but really, she had gained all the stubbornness that had skipped me. Unfortunately. "And that's only if you do as I say," I pretended to tap a non-existent watch on my wrist, "Now."

"Two," she repeated, eying me skeptically.

"One...Two...Three...Four," my tone increased in volume as I said each number.

"Okay," she bit her lip. I knew giving in wasn't easy for her. "Okay, okay! Stop counting! I'll do it!" Her feet danced down the hallway and I heard the faint sound of the bathroom door slamming shut, and I smiled briefly to myself.

I should have known my peace wouldn't last long. I jumped slightly as the phone started ringing. Thinking that it was only my parents calling to check up on us, I didn't make any effort to hurry to the phone.

But as it kept ringing, it made me uneasy. As silly as it sounds, the phone seemed impatient to me. After about three more rings, I became alert. Something was up. Something...I didn't know what.

It could just be Tanya. Usually I got these paranoid feelings whenever she was up to her antics. The usual raiding my diary (ha, as if I even had one _anymore_...) But she was in the bathroom, and my heart rate increased in the slightest.

I picked up the receiver, "Hello?"

"Annabeth?"

I frowned. People usually mistook my voice with my mother's over the phone because it distorted our voices the tiniest bit. It must have been the only thing about me that was like my mother. My hair was black and messy like my father's, and my eyes were my own. Rather than sea-green like his, they were a darker shade of blue.

I considered lying, and claiming to be my mother, but after remembering all the times I'd seen teens on TV shows do that, I decided against it. The voice wasn't foreign to me. It sounded like the centaur from camp that I'd only met two or three times. Charon? No. That wasn't right. Chiron? "Uh, no. Claire, actually."

"Claire?" His tone sounded too forced, too cheerful. My paranoia grew. "Oh my. It's been a while. You sound so much like your mother." The way he said mother, I could tell he wanted to talk to her, but he probably thought it was rude to straight out ask. "Is she home?" Or maybe not.

I plopped myself onto one of the kitchen stools and leaned forward on the marble counter top, "No. She and dad actually went out tonight. It's their anniversary."

"Oh," he replied, sounding put off. "Well, do you by any chance know when they might be home?"

"I'm not sure," I glanced at the clock, "But it's already eight, so I don't think they'll be much longer. I could give you my mom's cell number if you'd like," the words slipped out of my mouth before I could stop them. I nearly face-palmed.

Half-bloods weren't supposed to have cell phones, I could hear my mother scolding me already.

"I'm not certain that would be such a good idea," he said, gently, probably having thoughts similar to mine at the moment. "Could you just have them call me back at the camp number, or perhaps Iris message me?"

I nodded, but then felt stupid, because he obviously couldn't see me. "Uh, yeah, sure. Um, if you don't mind me asking, is everything alright?"

"Yes," he said in a hoarse voice. "Everything...is just fine. Could you have them contact me?"

"Of course," I responded, tightly. He was lying. "Um. Bye."

"Goodbye," was all he said before hanging up.

The sound of bare feet slapping against tiles grew closer, "I'm ready to watch Spy Kids!" Tanya sang cheerfully.

I managed a small smile, "Okay."

Call me nosy; but what was going on?

* * *

**-Sticky Notes-**

_No notes have been posted at the moment. _

**-Author Notes-**

The sticky notes above^ will be for when the whole myth thing plays in. Just for reference, really. My only worry for this chapter is that Claire sounds a bit whiny when she refers to Tanya's 'powers'. Criticism is welcomed and appreciated. Also, same deal for the Review Replies space. I'll use that to respond to your questions, concerns, or advice. Sorry. I have OCD, and there needs to be a certain space for everything in my book. *sighs*

**-Review Replies-**

_No reviews have been posted at the moment. _**  
**


	2. Chapter Two

By the middle of the second movie, Tanya had passed out from exhaustion, and was snoring loudly with her head resting on my lap. Not wanting to wake her, I gently picked her up and carried her to her room.

I nearly tripped over a pile of books. Figures.

Her room was a complete mess, it looked as if it had been hit by a twister. Even the posters of kittens and puppies on the walls were peeling.

I dropped her onto her bed, and I mean literally, _dropped. _

She wasn't heavy, exactly, but I'm not quite the most 'buff' fourteen year old girl that ever lived. My arms felt strained for a few moments, as usual, but other than that I was fine.

"Night, Tany-ee," I smirked as she only snored in response. If she had heard me use that age-old nickname, I would have been a dead fish.

My ears perked at the sound of the lock on the front door lurching. "We're home! Tanya? Claire?" My mother's voice called through the house, with the sound of footsteps approaching.

I closed Tanya's door. If she woke up, there was no way in Hades that she would fall back asleep, and we'd all be buried in our pillows trying to drown out the theme song of Spy Kids..._again. _

"Hey," I greeted, noticing their happy expressions. Dinner must have been good, I'd decided. "Did you have a good time?"

"Yes," my mother admitted, looking around me, "Where's Tanya?"

"Sleeping," I smirked at their incredulous expressions.

"Well, then, I guess she did a good job," my dad said, cheerfully. "Now we may be able to go out more often, Wise Girl."

He must have noticed my reluctant expression because he chuckled, "I was kidding. But seriously, though, how was the little bugger?"

"Good. She didn't use her," my hands clenched at my sides, "powers."

"That's good," my mother commented, idly, "It means she's gaining more control. Maybe she'll be able to go to camp soon," she bit her lip, as if pondering the idea.

This conversation wasn't easing my irritation. "Chiron from camp called."

Green and gray eyes turned to look at me. Good. I got their attention. My mother, as expected, was the first to react, "Oh, and what did he say?"

"He wanted you to Iris message him."

They shared a look. "O-okay, I'll go do that." My mother hurried off in search of mist and a drachma.

My father grimaced, "Figures we can't even have one day of normalcy."

"Not even on your anniversary," I quipped.

He ruffled my hair, "Better get ready for bed, kid. You look beat."

As if on cue, I yawned. "I'm not tired," my words were slurred, as if to prove his point.

Dad chuckled and pushed me towards my room, "Go to sleep."

"But-"

"Sleep. Now."

"Fine," I muttered before marching off towards my room. I was kinda tired. Okay, that was a lie. I was _majorly _tired.

My eyes drooped slightly, and I didn't even bother changing in my pajamas. I was too comfortable...

I plopped down onto my bed and was pulled into possibly the strangest dream I'd ever had.

_"You there, child," A woman hissed, lowly._

_I glanced around, taking in my surroundings. Checking for others who called possibly be defined as 'child'. I was alone. Well, besides the creepy lady, of course._

_"Um, hi?"_

_The woman snorted, "Just like your incompetent father."_

_"Excuse me?"_

_"Listen to me, child, and listen to me well," she continued, rudely, as if anything I had to say could wait until she finished._

_Even people in my dreams didn't respect me. Great._

_Her face was cloaked with a black hood, and I could only catch glimpses of her dark hair. She was wearing what appeared to be a dark cloak, and a gray dress/robe/toga._

_My apologies. I'm not up to date on the latest fashion styles from a bazillion years ago.  
_

_"I know you envy your sister greatly. You seek...revenge."_

_I snorted. "I don't want, revenge..." I dragged out the word just as she had, mocking her. "And I __don't __envy her!" _

_"Yes, you do, child. I have seen this. I have seen you great and powerful."_

_"Who are you?" I demanded, trying to remember all the things my mother had taught me about strange dreams that demigods had. I wasn't a demigod, but something was telling me that this wasn't the average dream._

_The hood dropped, and I suppose she was trying to be dramatic or something, but really it just seemed like something out of a bad horror movie. "I, am Nemesis, goddess of revenge."_

_"Well, it's been real swell meeting you," I rolled my eyes, "But your services aren't required."_

_"So you might think," she hissed, "but I know that you thirst for revenge against your sister. She has everything you want."_

_I didn't respond. This was ridiculous._

_"Everything that __should__ have been yours. Wasn't it __your__ right as first born? Shouldn't __you __be the one with magnificent powers, my dear?" _

_Yes, a small part of me wanted to say. I shook my head and looked away. "You're wrong."_

_"I am never wrong when it comes to these sort of things, child. I __know__."_

_"Leave me alone."_

_"I have seen all the wonderful, magical things you could do if you simply received the things you deserve." She persisted._

_"All you need is a little help," she paused, and lips pulled up into a smirk, "I'll be in touch. Do not forget this conversation, child."_

"Claire! Claire!"

I awoke to Tanya tugging at my hair. Wonderful wake-up call, huh?

"What?" I asked, groggily, my voice still thick with sleep.

"We're going to camp! We're going to camp!" She cheered.

Somehow, I knew that Nemesis had finished that conversation at that convenient moment, purposely.

I glanced at Tanya, who was beaming with joy.

She danced around, waving her hands, and moving just like water.

I knew she was right. I was jealous. I wanted to be special, too. But...how?

* * *

**-Sticky Notes-**

Nemesis, Greek goddess of revenge, was known for tempting people into seeking revenge.

*Spoiler Alert*

In the Percy Jackson series, she has only one known child, Ethan Nakamura, who was a part of Kronos' army. It can be implied that Nemesis blames Percy for the death of her son and wishes to avenge him.

**-Author Notes-**

My pretty much only worry on this chapter was about how Nemesis was characterized. Criticism is welcomed and appreciated.

**-Review Replies- **

**4-eva-bookworm; **Thanks:3 I'm really, really glad you enjoy the story.


	3. Chapter Three

"Are we there _yet_?"

Tanya and long car rides didn't mix well, as you could probably guess. This had to have been the fifteenth time she'd asked it, since we stopped at a gas station only twenty minutes ago. Every time my mother would reply with a, "Obviously not, Tanya, or we would have stopped."

This time, I decided intervention was necessary.

"Oh my gods, Tanya, _shut up_."

Ever since that meeting with Nemesis, I'd found it ridiculously easy to be particularly nasty to my sister. Which was bad. It was. Don't be mean to Tanya, I had thought to myself, she hasn't done anything to you.

_She just took everything you ever wanted. _

I shook my head to myself, and glared out the window.

"Guys," Dad warned from the driver's seat.

"Hmph," Tanya pouted, "I'm so bored!"

"Why don't you go drown yourself," I muttered to myself, not meaning for anybody to hear. "Oh, wait. You can't, _can you_?"_ Freak. _

"Claire!" My mother shouted, causing my father to flinch, resulting in an almost-car accident. She let out a deep breath, "That was rude, Claire. Apologize to your sister. Now." I could feel her gray eyes glaring at me via the rear-view mirror.

Tanya looked at me expectantly, and that made me want to explode.

_Brat._

"No."

I gulped. I'd never spoken back to my parents before. Not like this. But I didn't back down. Why should I apologize? I didn't do anything wrong. My mother's glare intensified in the mirror and she raised an eyebrow, "What did you say?"

"Did I stutter?"

If possible the temperature in the car dropped a few degrees. What was wrong with me? Was spitefulness a side-effect of meeting Nemesis? Why I was I being so obnoxious? I glanced down at my lap once, afraid that my my mother's eyes would burn me to ashes. She was scary like that sometimes.

"Percy. Pull over. I would like to speak to our daughter," I could feel my father's hesitance. "_Now_!" She barked.

"Alright, alright," he muttered, "It's about time for a bathroom break anyway."

He pulled over to the nearest stop, which happened to be a Super Walmart, and he glanced between Claire and I. I swear I saw sympathy flash in them when he looked at me. "C'mon, Tanya, let's go."

Tanya didn't unbuckle her seat belt. "If Claire's getting yelled at, I want to stay."

"Go, Tanya," my mother said, calmly. Too calmly to be sincere.

"Fine, but if Claire dies-"

"Oh shut up," I hissed.

Tanya poked her tongue out at me before slamming her door shut and trotting hand-in-hand with my dad up to the store. My feet were considerably interesting to me by this point, as I tried to avoid my mother's examining eyes. "Claire, what in the name of Olympus has gotten into you? You've never spoken back like this before!"

I didn't answer. A stray plastic bag was being dragged by the wind across the parking lot. Pollution. Cool.

"You will answer me when I speak to you, Claire Salena* Jackson!"

"I'm sorry," I said in a quiet voice. "I- I don't know why I said it. I'm just..."

"Claire, honey, you have to talk to me. What's going on?"

I considered telling her about Nemesis. But, I figured, if Nemesis could actually help me, my mother wouldn't let me accept it. So I lied. "I'm just really tired. I didn't get much sleep. Tanya woke me up and..." I trailed off lamely. It had to be the worst lie in the history of lies.

"Don't pull that on me, Claire, now tell me what's really going on," she pressed.

"Mom, I don't want to talk about it." I glared at my feet, "Can't you just let it go. I said I was sorry. I won't do it again."

I could practically imagine her eyebrows crinkling in thoughtfulness, "But that won't help solve anything. Not if we don't know the cause of the problem," I rolled my eyes. Leave it to my mom to over analyze things. "Claire...Have you...Are you on your period?" She asked quietly.

I blushed madly. "No!"

"Honey, it would explain the-"

"Mom," I groaned.

"-It would explain the mood-swings and the bad attitude you've acquired."

"Oh, hey, look who's back," she got my meaning at once. No talking about 'Girl-Stuff' was allowed in front of Dad. He had made it a rule once I'd hit twelve years old.

Dad looked anxiously at Mom, "Did we give you enough time to talk?"

"Obviously not," Tanya giggled, "Claire's still alive!"

My mother pursed her lips, "Tanya, it's not nice to joke about things like that," then she turned to my dad and sighed, "Let's just get to camp. I've had enough kid-centric drama for one day."

"I'm not a kid," I protested.

"Neither am I," Tanya said, with an indignant huff.

"Yes you are," I glared down at her, "You're ten."

Tanya glared right back, "_So_? Ten is not a kid number!"

"Yes it is."

"No it isn't!'

"Yes it is!'

"No it isn't!"

"_Shut up_!" My mother yelled from the front seat.

I could hear dad murmur in return, "Are you sure we should have brought them?"

* * *

**-Sticky Notes-**

In the Percy Jackson series it has been said that gods can give off a type of 'aura' that effects the people around them. In example: When Percy is around Ares in The Lightening Thief, his emotions grow angrier.

It's not proven, but in this story Nemesis gives off an 'aura' that causes people around her to be bitter, or spiteful, when they feel something isn't justified.

**-Author Notes-**

*Salena - Sally and Athena put together.

I know, I'm so lame :P

This was mainly a filler chapter to introduce the effects of Nemesis, and what interaction with the goddess does to Claire's personality.

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**greystarz18; **Thanks, and I would be pretty annoyed as well :3


	4. Chapter Four

"_Claire_, I want to go to the beach."

"And I want you to shut up," I bit out as I guided us in the direction, at least I thought was the direction, of the stables. We'd gotten to camp last night, and while Chiron had done his best, 'under circumstances' as he so eloquently put it, to give us a tour, I still had no doubt that I could get us lost.

And I was right.

"These don't look like the flying ponies," Tanya complained, pointing accusingly at the arena where athletic looking kids were attacking each other with lethal weapons. Briefly I wondered what they would think if they'd known that they'd been compared to pegasi.

I watched as one particularly buff looking one slashed the thinner one's arm. I shivered. No, I certainly didn't want to find out.

"We'll - We'll just ask for help," I suggested, meekly. The only other currently unnoccupied campers at the moment, were a group of girls who were chatting animatedly. I knew just by looking that they were Aphrodite's kids. And that made my stomach flutter nervously.

Now, I'm not under any delusion that I had been friendless my entire life, I'm just saying I wasn't the best at making conversation. My friends at school knew this, and still accepted me as I was. Hence, why they are categorized under my definition of 'friends'.

"Fine then," Tanya huffed, already marching over to the huddled group.

Suddenly I was panic stricken. My sister may have had super-cool magical, totally-un-mortal powers, but she was about as tactful as a donkey. She suffered from vocal-diarrhea. It hadn't taken long to learn that she had inherited this trait from my father. Do now, think later. I could already picture my dad and Tanya, side by side, wearing matching t-shirts that sported the phrase.

I followed closely behind.

"Do you know where the flying ponies are?" Tanya asked them, bluntly.

One of the girls raised an eyebrow, "Flying ponies?"

"Pegasi," I corrected, immediately. "She's ten. She doesn't know how to pronounce pegasi."

Tanya stomped her foot, "I can, too! Just watch: pegasee, no - that's not right," she muttered to herself, "pegaseeeh."

I placed a hand on her shoulder, protectively, as a few of the girls burst into giggles. Tanya was oblivious to this as she kept attempting to repeat the impossible word. My grip on her shoulder tightened, "If you could point us in the direction of the stables that would be ni-"

"Who are you?" asked a blonde who's face wasn't lacking make-up. "We've never seen you around here before. Are you new?"

A few turned to look at me with appraisal, and turned away, obviously disappointed. I wasn't one of them. "I'm Claire and this is Tanya," Tanya stopped her wordplay and flashed them a toothy smile. A few of them returned it with blindingly white teeth. I swear I had to squint a little.

"Nice to meet you, Claire, Tanya," a girl with brown hair and warm brown eyes smiled genuinely. She wasn't as blatantly beautiful as the rest of them, but more of a natural pretty. "I'm Cady. Cady Lesimeir. Daughter of Aphrodite."

One of them snorted and muttered something that sounded similar to 'obviously'.

"I'll show you to the stables. It was about time we got off our butts, anyway," she looked pointedly to the rest of her group. Most of them rolled their eyes, but some of them sat a bit straighter.

I assumed she was their cabin counselor.

When she stood, she was a good foot taller than me, I couldn't help but notice. "Aphrodite cabin, I believe you have canooeing in less than fifteen minutes. Chop, chop," she waved her hands, and they all stood up and scattered.

Wow. Now, if only that worked on Tanya...

Cady flashed us another smile, "Well, come along, then."

As we followed her, Tanya's ADHD seemed to kick in, because she began firing questions at Cady.

"How old are you?"

"Seventeen."

"Wow. That's old. Do you like swimming?"

"Not particularly. I'm more of a sun bather."

"I like swimming. Why don't you like swimming?"

"It's not my style. I do enjoy archery a bit, though."

"My mom doesn't let me play with arrows anymore." Insert pout. "What's your favorite color?"

"Baby blue."

"Mine's green. Why's yours baby blue?"

"My first dress ever was baby blue. My dad made it for me."

"Your _dad _made it?"

"Yes."

"Is he, like, a famous designer or something?" Tanya had asked, eagerly.

"No. He just owns a small shop in Arizona. It's really cute. Oh look - we're here."

Cady led us into a small stall where the 'flying ponies' were held.

Tanya squealed in delight and ran to pet an especially pretty one. It was pearl white and had a thick black mane with snowy wings. "What's this one named?" Tanya asked, curiously, petting the mane softly.

She jerked back before Cady could answer.

"You okay?" I asked, my eyebrows crinkling in concern. "It didn't bite you, or anything, did it?"

"N-no," Tanya said, her eyes narrowing. "And Pearl doesn't like that you make such assumptions. She doesn't eat little girls, she eats sugar cubes."

"What are you talking about?"

Cady smiled sweetly, "Tanya must be a daughter of Poseidon. He's patron of horses, see, so his children can communicate with them. Very cool."

"She's not a child of Poseidon," I glared down at the hay. It was all too easy to be mad at Cady for that innocent comment, even though she really didn't do anything wrong. "Our dad is. He's our grandfather."

Cady looked a little surprised. I couldn't blame her. From what I'd heard, half-bloods didn't often live long enough to reach puberty, let alone to have kids. "Oh. That's interesting. I guess it makes sense though..." I could tell she wanted to ask if I could hear them.

I tried.

I tried so flipping hard.

But, still, I heard nothing but the sound of hooves clucking in the stall. _Pearl's_ hooves.

"Come on, Claire, can't you hear them?" Tanya asked, and I tried to ignore the unintended smugness.

I can't control water like her.

I can't make a whole room shake when I don't get my way.

I'm just normal.

So it shouldn't have bothered me as much as it did that I couldn't speak to a flying horse. But it did. It bothered me so much that it almost hurt. I clenched my hands into fists at my side and attempted to compose my expression to indifference. I'm not sure it worked because Cady's returning smile was strained. "Can you watch her? I want to explore. My allergies are acting up with all this...exposure to animals," I looked pointedly at Pearl, who's lips might have curled into a sneer. I'll never know.

"Pearl isn't an _animal_," Tanya scolded, frowning. "She's a _pegasuuuuus_," she drew out the word, as if speaking to an infant.

"Whatever," I pretended to sniff, "My allergies are driving me insane. Don't get lost on your way back," I advised Tanya, halfheartedly. To be honest, by that point, a small part of me had hoped she would. Not for long. Just for a bit.

Just until I didn't want to scream at her for having everything. But, then again, who knew how long that could be?

"Later," I muttered to Cady, who looked uncomfortable at all the hostility that must have been radiating from me.

She nodded stiffly, "See ya around, Chloe."

I wanted to punch something as I heard Tanya giggle.

But I didn't stick around long enough to give into the urge. It wasn't long until I heard someone shout, "Look alive, kid!"

I winced as something struck me in the spine, and I fell onto my knees, cradling my head into my lap. My eyes stung with tears as the pain increased. "Eeeerggh," I groaned in pain, and rolled over and over and over, surely looking ridiculous.

My eyes shut as something above shadowed over me.

* * *

**-Sticky Notes-**

Pegasi - Plural form of Pegasus. Spell check says no. I say yes. If you have a problem with it, let me know. I'll change it. If not, forever hold your peace.

**-Author Notes-**

Cliffhanger, lalala. (Also, is Claire too whiny in this chapter?)

**-Review Replies-**

**Ocean Rising; **I'm glad that my story had the potential to force you into reviewing. That just made my day into a jumble of awesomesauce. Thanks~

**Riley Coyote; **Thanks, my goal was actually to try and keep them as in character as possible. Glad to know I'm doing something right :3

**alexandriarulzforeva; **Glad she annoys you, 'cause she's supposed to xD Thanks for the review!

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**Kep (Anon);** Here's a decently sized chapter just for you:) This may seem kinda like a filler as well, but the real action begins next chapter, I promise!

**MissOLeary; **YOUR USERNAME -gasp- I love that hellhound more than I probably should, considering it's fiction and all. Thanks for the review!

**Blazing Fox; **Who cares if she's ten? She annoys _me_. And she's_ my _OC! I've created a monster!


	5. Chapter Five

Something jabbed me in the ribs. _Ugh... _ I groaned.

_"Hello, child."_

_Nemesis._

_I blinked once, noting my blank surroundings, and how the goddess stood out in contrast. A part of my mind thought that she might have done this purposely, for she dressed in plain colors, black and gray. "You. What do you want?"_

_"I take it you remember our little deal," her lips tugged into an eerie little smile._

_"A little,"_ _I tried not to sound too interested, and most likely failed. _

_She rolled her dark eyes, "You must make a decision now. My patience is growing weary. The threat grows, and there is no time for such hesitance. So, what will it be, my dear, will you do the right thing or won't you?"_

_"What threat?"_

_"That doesn't concern you," her black eyes flashed dangerously, "But, perhaps, if you make the deal, I might be able to give you a small hint."_

_My mind was having an internal battle. I wasn't completely sure what the __right__ thing was yet. My mom had always said that if it made me happy, it was right. So, maybe, making this deal wouldn't be so horrible... "Okay. But what can you do for me? Can you give me powers like Tanya?" I asked, eagerly._

_Nemesis smiled, "I can do better than that, child. Once the threat rises completely, you may have whatever you desire. But first, you must serve me well."_

_"Serve you," I repeated, not enjoying the taste of it._

_"Oh, I do not expect much from you," she waved her hand, carelessly. "Just a few things. Simple things, really."_

_"Okay," I said, slowly. "What type of things?"_

_Nemesis' aura brightened, and so did my surroundings. The white blank walls that threatened to suffocate us - or me, can goddesses even suffocate? - turned a more cheerful pale yellow. "You will seek out one of my sons. Rex Loess. Remember that name," she warned. _

_"But what does he have to do with anything?"_

_"Oh," Nemesis replied, as if she'd been expecting this question. "I've just asked him to keep an eye on you, is all."_

_Something similar to panic rose in my throat, "You asked your son to __stalk__ me?" _

_"Not stalk. Just observe."_

_"But how come-" I froze. "I've never seen him."_

_"He's very sneaky," she announced, proudly. _

_I ran a hand through my messy hair, "Any other potential stalkers I should know about?"_

_"No," she paused, "Though..."_

_"What," I demanded._

_"Never mind," she sighed. "It's just you __are__ rather unfortunate, aren't you?"_

_"What? What are you talking about?"_

_"Go awake, child. We will discuss this later. Remember - Rex Loess."_

"Rex Loess?" Someone repeated. "What does she keep going on about _him_ for?

My eyes shot open.

"Oh, hey look, she's awake," one of the voices noted.

I glared up at the source. I wish I hadn't. He was a bulky, tough, I-can-kick-your-butt looking type of boy. He smirked down at me, and held a hand out, "Sorry. Sometimes I don't know my own strength," he motioned towards what looked to be an unsharpened spear.

Reluctantly, I accepted his hand as he pulled me to my feet with ease. "You threw that at me," I accused, as soon as I was upright, and I could clearly see his weapon of choice. It was clearly a spear without a point. So it looked more like a fighting stick. I rubbed my side. Whatever it was, it hurt.

"No," he countered, "I wasn't aiming at you. Not really. My aim was just off."

"More like your aim sucks," a girl I hadn't noticed before, commented. She was tough looking, too. Just my luck. She looked me over, carefully. "You were out for quite a while, are you alright?"

I tested my balance by walking. My head still ached, but I didn't trip at least. "Yeah. Just peachy. What _is_ that?" My eyes narrowed at the stupid stick-thing. It didn't look like it could cause much damage, but it sure had hurt. A lot.

"An adjustable spear," the boy said proudly, holding it up with honor. As if he hadn't almost skewered me with the stupid thing. "If I do this," he pressed a symbol on the side, "it sharpens itself." Sure enough the spear grew a point, only making it look more lethal.

"And do you make it a habit of trying to make shish kabobs out of people?" I knew that Nemesis might have been a contributing factor, but at the moment, I was royally ticked off.

The boy smirked. "Sometimes."

That got him elbowed by the girl, and he actually _winced_, I thought gleefully. "Look. Fine. I'm sorry," he said, gruffly, glancing at the girl out of the corner of his dark eyes. "I didn't mean to. Honestly."

He didn't sound sincere, but I didn't expect him to. "Fine. Whatever." I hesitated before asking, "Do you know where I can find Rex Loess?"

Spear-Boy's eyes narrowed, "Why?"

"Because."

He was about to retort with something he found incredibly witty, no doubt, when the girl interrupted, "Check the Nemesis cabin. That's your best bet. If he's not there, he likes rock climbing, try that area."

"Great, thanks," I smiled briefly at the girl, and shot Sir-Spear-A-Lot one last glare, which he returned fullheartedly. I stopped mid-step, and looked back sheepishly, "Which direction is the Nemesis cabin in?"

The girl's lips twitched. "You're new, aren't you?"

"Kinda," I admitted.

"Go straight, once you get to the 'circle of cabins', it's on the far left. You really can't miss it. I'm Remi, by the way," a full smile evolved on her face.

"Claire," I replied, smiling as well.

The boy grunted as Remi pinched his arm. He smiled sarcastically in my direction, "_So_ nice to meet you, Claire. I'm Gavin."

"Right," I didn't plan on remembering his name. "I'd better be off. It was nice meeting you," I said, honestly, looking only at Remi. To actually spare a glance at Gavin while saying those words would have been pushing it.

With that, I sprinted off in search of the Nemesis cabin and Rex Loess.

As Remi had predicted, I didn't miss it. Something about the way the wood panels seemed to loom over one another, and the ebony wood that had been used to build it screamed Nemesis. Or, at least, it had seemed so after my encounters with the goddess.

With hesitance, I climbed the steps and knocked once on the door. The windows were sealed with blinds, which I found odd. And irritating. My curiosity was growing by the second. What would I achieve by meeting Nemesis' son? Why would she have him follow me? Was he as creepy as his mom? Did spitefulness run in the family?

The door opened revealing a tall, dark, and okay a little handsome boy. He raised an eyebrow when he saw me, "Can I help you?"

"Er. I'm looking for Rex Loess, actually."

The boy's lips curled up into a smile. "Well," he leaned against the door frame, "You've found him."

Well, I thought, he definitely _wasn't_ creepy.

* * *

**- Sticky Notes -**

Remi and Gavin _are _half-siblings. I hinted at it by their appearances and actions between each other. But this is just confirmation. _  
_

**- Author Notes -**

You get a cookie if you can guess Gavin and Remi's parent. (I made it fairly obvious...) Also, I feel incredibly weird not writing Tanya this chapter...It's like I'm having unintentional antagonist withdrawal... :3 Also, the plot picks up from here. No more build-ups. Yay~

**- Review Replies -**

**MissOLeary; **Hee-hee.

**Kep (Anon); **I repeat, hee-hee. (Also, Cady was more of a spur of the moment type of OC. xD)

**Purpleblob; **Maybe...maybe not. xD You shall find out if/when Claire does.

**PandasWithBazookas; **I'm a little sister, and I'll proudly own up to the fact that I _do _annoy my sister more than I should. It's my job! Thanks for the review :)

**ashbod; **Why, thank you! :3


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